"Damn it! That family of five is indeed suspicious!"
Staring at the now empty thatched hut, the purple-robed man unleashed a fist, reducing the hut to rubble in an instant.
"My lord, could it be that the Imperial Son we are looking for is among those two children?" asked the golden-robed man, cupping his fists and bowing respectfully.
"Those two children are unlikely, but that man must know something. It seems he wasn't telling the truth yesterday. Search, search for them now! I don't believe they can escape far in a single night!"
The purple-robed man narrowed his eyes, a sharp glint flashing within them.
"Yes!" The two golden-robed men immediately moved and disappeared.
Meanwhile, on a small path through a grassy plain, Lin Xuan and Lin Chu walked slowly forward. As the sun hung high in the sky, beads of sweat gradually appeared on their foreheads.
"Hm?"
Just as the two were about to rest, a sense of inexplicable danger suddenly surged into Lin Chu's heart. Lin Chu immediately became vigilant and scanned his surroundings.
Seeing this, Lin Xuan also grew alert, even extending his arm to shield Lin Chu behind him.
For the past ten years, in addition to gathering herbs on the mountain with Lin Xiang daily, Lin Chu had often ventured alone through the mountains and valleys to hunt for game. He was naturally highly sensitive to the scent of wild beasts. The intuition he had cultivated would not be wrong.
Indeed!
As Lin Xuan and Lin Chu were fully on guard, a green shadow snake, over four meters long and as thick as an arm, slithered and coiled out. Its pitch-black head appeared particularly menacing under the sunlight.
Upon recognizing it as a Green Shadow Snake, Lin Xuan and Lin Chu showed no fear. They remained still, but their left hands slowly moved towards their waists. As they firmly grasped the saber at their waists, their hearts grew calmer.
However, Lin Xuan and Lin Chu made no move. Having gathered herbs on the mountain with their grandfather since childhood, they were very familiar with the Green Shadow Snake. Acting rashly would provoke its hostility. Such a large Green Shadow Snake was not something that could be easily killed.
Thus, the three – two humans and one snake – remained in a standoff for a full quarter of an hour. Finally, the Green Shadow Snake lost its patience, hissed, and slithered away, disappearing from Lin Xuan and Lin Chu's sight.
"Whoosh!"
Seeing this, Lin Xuan and Lin Chu couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. While they weren't overly afraid of the Green Shadow Snake, a fight would undoubtedly be dangerous. It was best to avoid confrontation if possible.
"Hiss!"
Just as Lin Xuan's guard dropped, believing the danger had passed, the Green Shadow Snake that had departed suddenly circled back and lunged towards Lin Chu's back. Its tiny fangs glinted coldly under the sun.
"Hmph!"
Lin Chu swung his saber backward and, with a swift turn, directly struck the snake's head. Snake blood instantly sprayed onto Lin Chu's face.
Without time to wipe it off, Lin Chu attempted to draw his saber again but found it stuck fast in the snake's head, impossible to dislodge. The wounded Green Shadow Snake, using the momentum, immediately coiled around Lin Chu.
Feeling the constricting force of the snake, Lin Chu's heart tightened. Looking at the foul-smelling maw before him, Lin Chu knew that a bite would likely be fatal. With no other choice, Lin Chu clamped his hands firmly onto the snake's head and thrashed wildly.
As Lin Chu struggled, the Green Shadow Snake tightened its grip, its coils becoming increasingly forceful. Lin Chu began to feel a sense of suffocation.
Lin Xuan, seeing this, rushed forward and grabbed the tail of the Green Shadow Snake with both hands, pulling with all his might. However, his strength was insufficient, and his efforts had no effect.
"Damn it!"
Feeling his strength wane, Lin Chu's eyes gradually turned red. In a desperate act, he opened his mouth wide and bit down on the snake's body, the bloody snake venom instantly flooding his mouth.
Lin Chu, suppressing the urge to vomit, held on tightly. The man and the snake were locked in a stalemate, neither willing to let go.
Time passed. Lin Chu, on the verge of fainting, finally felt the constriction around him loosen. He again clamped his hands onto the snake's head and forced it away from his face.
With Lin Xuan's help, the Green Shadow Snake was finally pulled off Lin Chu.
"Huff, huff!"
Only when the suffocating pressure was completely gone did Lin Chu release his bite. He looked down and saw that the Green Shadow Snake was dead. Where he had bitten, precisely at the snake's vulnerable spot, a blood-red, spherical object was faintly visible.
"Is this a Green Shadow Snake Gallbladder?" Lin Chu exclaimed with joy. Having gathered herbs with his grandfather for so many years, he was well-versed in medicinal herbs and precious natural treasures.
The Green Shadow Snake Gallbladder was an excellent medicine for restoring vitality.
However, ordinary Green Shadow Snakes rarely possessed such gallbladders. To find one in the snake he had just killed was a stroke of immense luck.
After confirming it once more, Lin Chu used his saber to pry out the Green Shadow Snake Gallbladder, split it in half, and, enduring the bloody taste, swallowed it.
Lin Xuan also took the half of the gallbladder Lin Chu offered and, with a slight frown, swallowed it.
As the Green Shadow Snake Gallbladder entered his body, Lin Chu felt a surge of intense heat spreading within him. His previously weakened body seemed to be infused with new strength.
"This Green Shadow Snake Gallbladder is truly a remarkable thing," Lin Chu smiled slightly, feeling the power coursing through him.
"To be able to form a gallbladder, this Green Shadow Snake must have been quite old. Grandfather used to say that Green Shadow Snakes capable of producing gallbladders had parts that were all valuable for medicinal purposes. However, it's best to sever the head," Lin Xuan said.
Lin Xuan swung his saber, cutting off the snake's head, and placed the body into a cloth bag.
"Whoosh!"
Just as Lin Xuan and Lin Chu were about to continue their journey, they heard a whistling sound. Looking up, they saw one of the three golden-robed men they had encountered yesterday flying from the direction of Lin Family Village.
Seeing this, Lin Xuan and Lin Chu quickly scrambled into the nearby tall grass. Fortunately, the wild grass on the plains grew luxuriantly, and at their height, it still reached their waists. Hidden amongst the grass, they were now even more difficult to spot.
"Buzz!"
Just as Lin Xuan and Lin Chu began to worry, the golden-robed man slowly descended from the sky and landed at the spot where Lin Xuan and Lin Chu and the Green Shadow Snake had been.
"Hmph! They indeed fled in this direction!" the golden-robed man muttered, glancing at the snake's severed head on the ground before looking up towards the road ahead.
Hearing the golden-robed man's words, Lin Xuan and Lin Chu dared not even breathe. Sweat poured from them, instantly soaking their clothes.
From the golden-robed man's words alone, Lin Xuan and Lin Chu knew that Uncle Wang's suspicions were all true. These people were not Lin Chu's relatives. If they fell into their hands, Lin Chu's life would likely be forfeit.
"Stay calm, stay calm..." Lin Chu desperately tried to soothe himself, his eyes fixed on the golden-robed man through the swaying blades of grass.
As if sensing something, the golden-robed man slowly turned his body towards Lin Chu's hiding spot. Frowning, he began to move deliberately.
"No! I've been discovered!" Seeing the golden-robed man's movements, Lin Chu panicked. However, at this moment, he dared not make the slightest move.
Unbeknownst to Lin Chu, as the golden-robed man approached his hiding place, a purple light flashed around him, and he and Lin Xuan instantly vanished.
"Strange, did I sense it wrong?"
Looking at the surrounding grass, the golden-robed man frowned in confusion. He sensed again but finally shook his head and moved on, continuing his pursuit.
Meanwhile, Lin Xuan and Lin Chu stared at the departing golden-robed man with stunned bewilderment. The golden-robed man had been less than a meter away from them just moments ago.
And yet, he hadn't seen them?